California origins, original looks, upgraded engine – perhaps the only drawback we can find to this 1968 BMW 1600-2 for sale on Hemmings.com (if one could consider this a drawback) would be the constant comparisons to the later BMW 2002. Then again, observers wouldn’t have much time to make those comparisons if the car’s being driven, right? From the seller’s description:

A rare and well-maintained 1968 BMW 1600, the first 1600 production model of the 1968 model year. For the true BMW aficionado, this car was upgraded in 2008 with ti power, new interior seating, paint, sound deadening material, Sanden A/C that blows ice cold and much more. A rust-free California car. Many original parts including brightwork, steering wheel. More than $23,000 invested. Starts right up and drives great. New tires and all 5 wheels sandblasted and repainted to original factory color. The perfect weekend driver.

Chamonix/black, solid CA black plate car from new, 1st 1600-2 built for 1968 (12/67); Serial #1562154 built 12/67 per archive. Currently in residence on East Coast since June. Still have CA black plates. Straight, solid, retaining original detail including all brightwork, trim, grille work and kidneys, glass, headlights and taillights, turn signals, etc. 12-volt, new battery, padded dash. Restored 2008, partly dismantled, stripped chassis leaving only subframe, headliner, doors, fenders and trunk lid in place. All asphalt removed from floors and repainted. All original metal. Original no marker body, silver dollar gauges, original bus steering wheel, jack, spare, trunk boards with grab handle.

21 Responses to “Hemmings Find of the Day – 1968 BMW 1600-2”

Oh man, does THIS one bring back memories for me! One just like it in exactly the same colors was the first car that I ever saw 100 m.p.h. in on a public road. Okay, maybe it was only 98, but it seemed wicked fast!

What a fun car to tinker with, not that there’s much left to tinker with. I’ve always liked these, along with the big Packards and Nash’s and whatever.. I like them all. Nice job on mixing up the vehicles, Hemmings. I look forward to this e-mail probably more than any other, and the comments aren’t mean-spirited like some other car-related ones that I get.

These are fun cars to drive. I got my only speeding ticket from the CHP in my wife’s 1974 Inca orange 2002. This car just had a mind of its own and wanted to go. When I asked the motorcycle cop why he stopped me, he said I was going faster than everybody else on the freeway. I paid the original owner $3000 for it in 1989 and sold it for $3,500 1994. It was a birthday gift for my wife, who drove the heck out of it. When I went to offer it for sale, I had it detailed for $125, which made the paint look like new. I’m sure it’s still out there running today, snagging speeding tickets for its latest owner.

I’ve never understood the attraction to these mid-century BMWs. Apparently the company invested solely into the mechanical elements and overlooked the aesthetics. If a Rambler and a Corvair ever got together to produce an offspring, it would surely be this. That said, I’ve been told that ten minutes behind the wheel surely would change my opinion. Perhaps. But performance without penache is an unfortunate conundrum.

It’s a very slippery slope to judge whether a car, house, loaf of bread, whatever, is aesthetically pleasing. 100% of the answer to that lies within each individual person and their own tastes. There is no right answer as to what the most “beautiful” car would be, or the “best color” or the tastiest food or anything like that. I see it all the time, people arguing over what the most beautiful car is or what car looks best in what color. You just can’t judge those things for others. Obviously, a few million people can’t be wrong in liking the looks of this car, they just have a different viewpoint and/or view of beauty than you do. Neither is wrong, just different.

The beauty is in the simplicity. The well propotioned lines and greenhouse glass giving escellent vision all around. To some of us, pure functionality IS beauty. Although I think that the 30’s produced some of the most beautiful rolling art ever produced, I’m VERY attracted to this as well. I must be weird !

In 1968 I was asked by a freind to drive a new BMW 1600 from Berkeley down to San Diego, where I was going anyway. She almost didn’t get her car back. It was a revelation – the best thing I had ever driven, and comfortable too! It baeame the benchmark by which I have judged all other cars since, and very few measured up. I have never owned one, but this one is soooo tempting!

All in the eye of the beholder, as they say. I wanted a 1600ti but none were to be found, so I bought a new 1969 2002 and never regretted it! I loved it for its simplicity and toughness. The great handling, slim pillars, outstanding visibility and interior comfort sold me. I installed a set of adjustable Konis, wider steel wheels and a pair of Cibie Biodes and then drove the hell out of it. Althought it had a weak second-gear sychro, I still think it was one of the best cars I’ve ever owned.

I had a ’67 1800 TI, my Mom drove it, and I repaired it frequently.
It had dual webers, and was fast! Difficult to get parts for, though. Sold it it the eightys, and got her a Volvo so I’d have some time to work on my own car. Miss it, though. Still got a picture.

Ahhhhhrgh! I had a 69 2002 in my youth. Still one of my favorite cars to drive. The force of the steering wheel returning to center after a turn was amazing, never seen the like since. With gas prices today, never a better time to own one! Wish I had room for another…

Esthetics are, indeed, in the eye of the beholder, or early-sixties Furys wouldn’t be commanding the prices they do. In this case, beauty truly is as beauty does: The 1600/2002s offered room for five, a surprisingly spacious trunk, and 360-degree visibility from that big, open greenhouse long before high-wedge styling and near-zero rear visibility took over. The 1600 adds the Teutonic simplicity of an unpainted chrome grille and those all-business dogdish hubcaps. Yet it outhandled most true sportscars of the day (and many later “sporty” cars) and gave little up to the better-known 2002; in fact, it revved more freely and still got past the hundred mark. This one has all the good stuff, particularly the 5-speed for that low, 4:11 rear. Hopefully the seller “upgraded” the faulty thermostats these old Bimmers were known for (drilling a tiny hole in the valve prevents the notorious air bubble that sent so many of them steaming to the roadside). Wish I still had mine!

My dad had a new green 1975 2002 auto, I totally loved that car and actually liked its short-shifting slush box. Don’t want to admit the tank-slapper I got into and lucked out of, on a long curve with snow hidden in the shadows of the outside edge, telephones poles flashing by. My own car was a 1968 beetle which was not anywhere near new after 7 years.

If anyone has a DEAD-STOCK 1600, they’d probably better keep it “as is”, as it’ll be a rare bird, indeed someday, if not already.

Obviously, BMW soon saw the need to upgrade their little gem with more power and performance, and hence came out with the 2002, [like the one I terrorized the roads of Southern Ohio with in the late 60s/early 70s.]
But let’s review, if my memory serves me correctly: After that fabled impassioned speech in the Boardroom by one of their attorneys whose name I’ve forgotten, BMW decided to go ahead and remain in the car business. They soon got a reputation, mostly with their 1800, for building cars that race drivers liked to use as personal transportation.
Well, the NEXT step was to build a high-quality COMPACT that, say, the Mercedes owner wouldn’t feel ashamed of as his second car; THEN after impressing this key market, came the head-turner of the 2002; THEN came a 6-cylinder “full-sized” car and whaddaya know? – this upstart little company was now going head-to-head with Mercedes, etc. itself. BRILLIANT marketing!
Therefore the 1600, dead stock, is an iconic piece of BMW history.
[Not that I wouldn’t like to own this little critter – it sounds luscious.]

Final word on style: Charley Nemeth of Continental Sports Cars once described the 1600/2002 styling as “neat – like an opera singer wearing a bow tie.”
I’ll go along with that; it was, after all, originally targeted for an upscale market, and they didn’t want to upstage the proud Mercedes it would share the garage with. At least not yet.

Bought a red/blk 1600 Dec 1968. Fantastic car to drive (some trouble with engine mounts though). Sold my 64 sports Fury to the mechanic at the BMW dealer. I was waiting for BMW to introduce a sport model based on the Glass which they acquired a year earlier, this is what they came out with so I went with it. Later a 98 M3 and now a ’11 335is. They are the best.

Bought my 1600 new in 1969 while in college. Drove it as daily driver until 1985 when second child meant more room. Drove it less frequently and in 2012 decided to give it an uplift. replaced 4 spd with later model 5 speed, changed out rear end, wasn’t compatible with new trans. put in new urethane bushings, moved battery to trunk, braces at suspension towers front and rear, new struts, new weber w/ electric fuel pump (noisy). New seats w/ headrests. 1600 motor bored to limit over the years and replaced w/ factory 2002 rebuilt (crate) motor.
Always loved the car, love it even more now . Probably purists feel I desecrated it but it’s even more of a fun ride. Re-sprayed once (same Polaris silver as original) needs new paint and fix rust in bottoms of door panels.
Can’t part with it, too much history, 45 years! yeah, old F—-.